Devious Smiles
by Kit Carson
Summary: A darker take on the actual intelligence of the Endearing Rubber Idiot. Or a conversation between Captain and First Mate. No Ship. possible epilogue to follow if this is enjoyed.
1. Chapter 1

Devious Smiles

Roronoa Zoro was a man of many talents. He had both created and mastered a whole new way of sword fighting, He was known as one of the Demon Trio, he was singlehandedly responsible for defeating many people on the Grand Line and in the New World. And right now he was settled in shadow watching his captain.

The man in question was laughing and enjoying himself in the middle of the Dressrosa victory party, his eyes alight with joy. Zoro was contemplating his captain's choices of the evening and while the sake was delicious it was not enjoyed by Luffy from the Father cup. Others seemed to let the glint in his eyes slide, however he knew what it meant, and it made a smile stretch across his own lips. One he quickly schooled into something _less_ menacing to people who were not Nakama.

With the party finally winding down Zoro slipped off from the edge of the crowd and into Luffy's path towards the cabin. Here, out of sight of everyone, the happy go lucky mask slipped just a shade. Not enough to make it difficult to pull back if someone who wasn't familier with Strawhat Luffy came by, but enough to show the man under the mask. And it made Zoro's smile sharpen even more.

There was no cruelty in Luffy's eyes. In all of his time sailing with the young man he had never seen cruelty in any of his actions. But that didn't mean that Luffy was all sunshine and sweetness either. Zoro had noticed little things from as far back as he could remember. After all what kind of nutcase takes apart a marine base for three swords for a man he had never met?

Of course the bar incident with the "Hyena" made it stupidly obvious to Zoro, if not to Nami. That moment of directness, the glint in his eyes, the subtle shift of his voice at the order given, the recognition of how to handle the situation in a split second. Zoro saw it all. And he knew right then what he had been following and watching, what he had been so loyal to. What had drawn him to this Straw Hatted menace.

"Are you going to let Trafalger see?"

Luffy didn't start at the sound of his first mate's voice, he never did. Always aware, especially of his crew, yet another thing Zoro enjoyed. He did flash teeth in something that resembled a smile in Zoro's direction.

"Like the rest of you saw?" that did startle Zoro. Even he was surprised from time to time at how much Luffy noticed about his beloved crew members.

"Ah. Any yet you still play with the mask on around everyone."

"Of course!" this was a bright response. "Honestly Zoro, what did you expect?"

"Exactly that. You wouldn't be the captain we love if you didn't."

"Good." A silence fell between the two men as they settled into the cabin set aside for Luffy alone. It was broken by a very direct question.

"Are you as dumb as you pretend to be?" given the context of the previous conversation it was an odd question for the first mate to ask of his captain. The look of amusement that accompanied the reply was as sharp as Luffy's smile.

"Zoro, no one is as dumb as I pretend to be." This reply did not seem to startle Luffy's first mate at all.

"Do the others know how intelligent you really are?"

"It's like you said. They have _seen_ me."

"But do they understand?" this question heralded a brief silence as Zoro's captain contemplated his answer.

"Robin probably does. After all she has eyes and ears everywhere." Luffy responded at last, peering at a partially hidden eye on one wall. It crinkled in an amused fashion before disappearing from sight. Zoro nodded in agreement.

"Anyone else?"

"no one else has asked yet. Until then, all they can do is guess. Brook is what, 90 something years old? He can probably tell, but he will never actually ask. After all we, _I_ , accepted him after he was alone for so long. He wasn't what I expected, but he was exactly what I wanted from a person in his position. Franky was perfect, I marked him early on when I realized he was an even better fit than anyone in the ship yard. He probably guesses to, but like Brook it is age and experience with lots of people that gives him an advantage. Also, he protected Robin. Big selling point right there. Chopper only has a faint idea. He notices, and has even mentioned it before but he won't ask until he is ready. No sense worrying until then. Sanji of course is happy to go along with anything as long as I don't waste food or stop his flirtatious behavior. After all, the All Blue can't be that hard to find. We found a city in the sky, why not a magic ocean? Usopp, the son of the sniper Yasopp, as soon as I realized who he was I realized he would be worth keeping. So I did. And look at how talented he has become. Hell, with the development of his Haki he can help us find the all blue."

"What do you mean captain?"

"You didn't notice yet? Well he hasn't used it much yet but he has Haki now too. As long as we show him how to do what we need he can give us what we want. Perfect really. We just have to make sure he thinks _he_ is the one leading that search, he is after all _God_. Man that pisses Franky off to no end. Its going to be funny to watch that develop, but keep an eye out, don't let it turn into something that is actually nasty! Who did we leave off at?"

"What about the Weather Witch?"

"Nami? What do you have against Nami? She is the perfect Navigator for our crew. Who else can recognize the natural weather changes as well as she can. And after her trip to where ever, she is only improved. Natural talent with actual teaching, perfect. And it's not like that Idiot Arlong actually recognized the blessing he had. Hurting her like that? You get more flies with honey after all."

Zoro actually chuckled at that. And silence once more fell in perfect accord between the two men. The room began to darken more as the candles burned low. Luffy watched his First Mate chew on another question, the contemplation obvious because Zoro felt he had nothing to hide from his captain. At last curiosity got the best of him.

"What about me?" the quiet question suited the atmosphere. There was nothing subtle about it, but spoken the way it was left it soft in the descending shadows. White teeth flashed in the waning light. A smile, sharp and sure; easily given to the man who had been the first of his crew.

"You Zoro? What do you mean? Shishishi." The distinctive chuckle sounded exactly the same as it did in sunlight, on the deck of the Sunny, but here, with the lights going out one by one and shadows covering Luffy's eyes, it seemed different, darker. "I _chose_ you. Before all the others, before I had a way to follow the plan to find the others. I chose you. Granted I didn't expect to find you in such an interesting position. But it made my life easier. I knew you were strong; almost as strong as me. Your reputation had spanned the East Blue and so off I went. Coby helped with that. Never thought he would actually be as useful as he turned out to be. But he even gives Gramps someone to pass his wants on to. I'm sure as shit not gonna do it myself. After all-" and here the strength of the King's Will if not the full expression of its power filled the cabin.

"I'm Going to be King of the Pirates!" Zoro thought back to all the things in their journey that where blamed on his luck and smiled.

"And I will be your Right Hand and First Mate when you do."

"Good." The last candle went out leaving them in darkness. In that moment, there was nothing left to say.

End

Outtake…

Generally speaking Zoro had very few complaints about his life. He was well on his way to becoming the greatest swordsman in the world, he was the right hand of the future Pirate King, and the damn Curly Brow always stocked the best sake.

That being said, napping underwater was not quite as nice as napping on the deck of the Sunny. There was also no one really to spar with, with both captain and cook gone for the foreseeable future. No space in the sub for Katas to burn off any energy and no weights to lift for strength training so after three days it was becoming telling that the swordsman of the straw-hats was a little tense.

It was at this time that one Trafalger D. Water Law decided to take matters into his own hands. A twitchy swordsman in a tight space was not a good idea after all; especially when the swordsman in question could easily punch a hole in the sub with a single swipe of his blade.

"We are surfacing for a little while Zoro-Ya. There is an island nearby to stretch our legs on."

"I thought we weren't stopping until we reached Wado?" Zoro dryly

"Would you rather stay underwater?" the rather bland delivery was quite typical of the older pirate.

"No." the venomous reply made Law smirk.

The Polar Tang breached the surface of the ocean like a whale coming up from the depths. Once it settled on the surface and the waves subsided all the individuals currently on the sub piled onto the deck area and made a beeline for the shore.

Unlike the crew, Law hesitated before leaving the interior of the sub. His pause was short, subtle in nature, and un-noticed by many. Zoro was not one of many. At the wordless sign he too paused, allowing the others to head for the beach without him.

With most out of earshot (though he was never sure about Robin) Law turned to the green haired swordsman.

"Zoro-Ya, can you wait for a moment. I have a question for you," Zoro turned to the taller man eyebrow raised. "it's about your Captain." The eyebrow lowered and he smiled, sharklike.

"Your new friend?" Law's normaly calm face did an entertaining series of expressions. "What about him?"

"tell me about him. If I am going to be his ally for a while-" "Forever." Law frowned at the interruption "then I need to know more about him."

"He is an idiot. What else do you need to know?"

"Is he? Because none of you would follow a _true_ idiot. Would you?" though worded as a question it was spoken by one who already knew the answer. "I don't believe he is as moronic as he presents himself."

"Believe what you want, Trafalger." Zoro offered a smirk of his own but did not move, waiting for the other man to continue.

"I have taken the past few days to study your crew, and all of you are diverse with incredible strengths and strength of character. None of you, even Nose-Ya, would follow a fool. He has come too far and done too much to truly be that moronic." Zoro looked over Law's shoulder and then looked back at Law.

"Ask the question you really want to ask Law. I want to get a good work out in today."

"Why do you pander to the mask of the fool? If you know as I believe you do, then why do you let him get away with all of the foolish childishness?"

"He is the Man who will be the King of the Pirates. And he is _**our**_ Captain. Do we need another reason? Just as he chose **you** , as ally and friend, he chose _us_ as the crew of the Pirate King."

"Who else knows?" Zoro nodded at something over Law's shoulder.

"Guess." Law turned around at the new voice. Robin had appeared back on deck. She smiled and then disappeared. A small seed popped at Law's feet with a pink medicine cap inside and a single steel screw. Zoro stood strong before Law. The two men silent on the bobbing deck for a moment before Law nodded and left for the island.

"Captain Trafalger, he intends to keep it that way. So keep it that way." Another shark like grin graced Zoro's face before he vanished onto the island to stretch his legs. In the distance Law saw a portion of the forest vanish in a flurry of leaves.

"Will do….Straw Hat-Ya"


	2. Out-Take

Out take 2! (or I blame my husband for this)

Enjoy!

Kit

Roronoa Zoro was slightly confused. How the ever-loving heck did Monkey D. Garp manage to show up here. He was so far away from where he was supposed to be at this moment it was almost comical.

There was nothing Comical about that mans face.

With no jacket, no ship, no crew, and nothing remarkable but a blank face and a determined stride he approached the Vice-Captain of the straw-hat pirates. Zoro stood in contentment, with no inclination to attack, and the wreckage of his work out strewn around him. A bottle of sake sat at his elbow and a cup rested beside it, un-used at the sight of his current guest. The smile that greeted the oncoming Marine was more teeth then friendliness but was at least present and was received at intended.

"Pirate Hunter." Garp's voice was bland and perfectly polite.

"Fist." If Garp was bland Zoro spoke like a shark, his was as smooth as water over scales.

"In the spirit of hospitality, may I pour you a drink?" Garp grinned, his public smile, and from his pockets pulled a flask and two small metal tumblers. They glowed dimly, having obviously been polished recently.

"Sake? I could go for a glass, if you're offering."

"Excellent! Stole this from Sakazuki's desk. Enjoy!" the slight widening of his eye was the only inclination of Zoro's surprise at this. He grinned in response, delighted at the explanation.

"Then it will be twice as good!"

A lone old table sat forlorn in the wreckage of what was once a mighty ship. It now lay abandoned and empty, the marks of a crew that abandoned it in a hurry left scattered about. Zoro perused his handy works as he hunted up a second chair.

"You look mighty pleased with yourself Pirate Hunter." Garp sounded almost blasé, but the time spent with Luffy stood Zoro in good stead. Like Grand-Father like Grand-Son after all. Any man that successfully hunted the former Pirate King was _definitely_ not as foolish as he pretended to be.

"I'm sure you already know why." The splash of Sake went down smooth, and a second was added soon after. Eyes met. Silence stretched between them, a thread of tension beginning to twist into each breath. Finally, Garp snorted softly in amusement.

"you're right, I already do. All if this is recent work after all. What happened? Get _Lost_ again?"

"even lost I still end up in the right place at the right time, so I don't see what the problem is." Zoro offered the Marine nothing but a toast. No hints to how he was feeling or reacting in his eye, or voice, or posture; absolutely nothing and it was all Garp needed to confirm what he suspected all along. He investigated the bottom of the shallow cup as if it held all the answers to the world.

"you know, my Grand-Son had no father figure other than me and that good for nothing Red Hair. So much of who he has become is because of how he learned and what happened to him as a child. His 'brothers', they wore masks. Identities that hid who they where and what they where capable of. Luffy's exactly the same way. I'm sure it has already started. The questions and the comments. The sly remarks about luck and timing. The slow realization that no man as foolish as he acts could truly be Capable of doing all the things, he has done. AND be the captain of a crew like yours." Zoro did not drop his gaze and instead waited for the older man to look back up before giving him the reply settled on his tongue.

"Much like you? He who plays the fool, and yet is far more capable and intelligent then he appears? You are a Vice-Admiral. Feared and respected. And laughed at. For things that you can do and control. You wore a DOG hat for fuck sake. Knowing full well what it would do to your reputation." Zoro's voice was soft, and slightly husky from the booze.

"And like you" A shark like grin appeared in reply. "the man who brought in enough bounties to feed himself, stay in hotels, and maintain his weapons? The man who at such a young age could live and live reasonably well with no help from a sponsor? Who now gets lost in a straight line? It is hard to believe that one of the monster Trio could be so foolish."

"Is there a point to this? Because the booze is delicious, but I'm not sure why you are here. If you want to actually ask something, do it. Because the ship leaves soon, and if I'm too late Trafalgar will find you here. And then we will actually have to fight."

"He is already here. I just don't think he drinks so I didn't bring him a glass."

"Mm. Still, why are you here. And why now?"

"how is he. I only have news papers to look to and they are so heavily censored that I can't get a good idea of what he is up to."

"the Captain is doing what he has been doing for the last little while. Working to be the pirate king. He may have an army, but the goal is not to gain many followers, it is to be the greatest Pirate of them all. It is one of the reasons he joined in an alliance, his ally is smart, and he wants that for himself. Wants his ally to be his equal, a captain who's respect he has earned. And one that he can trust absolutely. And if he is betrayed?" here Zoro's voice raised, the brittle edges of his words catching at his audience "if someone betrays the Captain, that person won't just be worried about being hunted by the new Emperor of the sea, or the future Pirate King. That person is going to be hunted down and destroyed by US." Here was the man that trained under the greatest swordsman in the world. Here was the man that fought and lost and Lived. The man who had stood by his convictions and was becoming someone to fear and respect. He radiated ferocity and intent, the edges of his almost maniacal grin where tinted with bloodlust.

"Mhm. I can see that. And how did my grand-son convince you to fake a sense of direction that it that bad?" Garp sipped his drink unaffected by the display beside him.

At that comment a soft snort could be heard and the single open eye crinkled in amusement, he tipped his empty glass to silently request more.

"nothing can ever be proven you know." It was Zoro's turn to sound contemplative and nostalgic "when it is just two men in a little tiny boat with nothing but the wind and an idea and an off handed comment about being underestimated and how some querks can be… and advantage, even in battle. When people assume you are an idiot, they don't take you seriously."

"And how long did take you to actually figure out this particular plan in its entirety?" sharp eyes met over refilled cups.

"if this is a thing that did happen, as we are implying but not actually stating, I probably would have noticed when his mask cracked in Dressrosa. And confronted him on the fact that all those offhanded comments and all those 'happenstance' things came to perfect alignment at that point."

"Long time to be thinking about this." The chair creaked softly as Garp shifted a bit to get comfortable

"And you Garp the Fist? How long have you suspected?"

"The entire time!" Garp gave his typical boisterous laugh and got up from the creaking chair. His glass set next to the now almost completely empty flask. "Enjoy your drink pirate hunter!" he turned around and left the way he came, only the flask and glasses remaining to mark his presence. Zoro tossed back the last of his drink and began heading in the direction of Trafalgar, who he sensed nearby. Picking up his large bottle of salvaged Sake on his way.

A soft breeze blew by. Only two glasses and a flask on a rickety table remained of the meeting.


End file.
